Dark Specter [Hardcover]

Michael Dibdin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 12, 1999

With an extraordinarily acute take on the extremist mind, the award-winning author of Ratking gives readers an electrifying story of interconnected lives, all of which spin in a desperate orbit around a man known to his followers as the "Eternal Prophet."

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Dibdin is a connoisseur's thriller writer, widely admired for his neat craftmanship in such novels as Dead Lagoon.

In this stunning new novel he once again widens the boundaries of his fiction, linking seemingly unrelated lives: a hapless family man whose world is blasted apart by apparently random events, police detectives in several cities investigating cold-blooded multiple murders, members of a cult whose initiation rite is an act of pure, rationalized malevolence. All these lives spin in desperate orbit around a man known to his followers as Los, the Eternal Prophet--a man whose mind is a ground zero of psychosis and mayhem. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Poets and psychopathology converge in another crime thriller as Dibdin, known best for his Aurelio Zen procedurals set in Italy, writes about a religious cult led by a Blake-obsessed fanatic. The evil in this tale, however, which is at once more organized and more random than that in Michael Connelly's Poe-prompted The Poet, also ranges across the U.S. Dibdin meticulously establishes the skeleton of his intricate story, introducing readers first to a boy who by chance survives the shooting murder of everyone else in his Seattle household. More murders-near Chicago, in Kansas City, in Atlanta-are related in chapters that alternate with those narrated by Phil, a college English teacher in Minneapolis, who is married and the father of a little boy. Phil runs into Sam, a Vietnam vet with whom he shared a house in their druggie student years. Later, Phil's son disappears and is presumed dead; his wife commits suicide and Phil, unmoored, visits Sam on an island off the Washington coast. There the threads of this plot, which Dibdin has so masterfully laid out, are drawn together in a diabolical pattern that is loosely pinned on the writings of Blake and ends, as it began, in a house whose occupants, bound and gagged, are threatened with execution. Dibdin's fans may decry his having exchanged elegant, dark Venice for this glossy, plastic-colored U.S. setting, but his deft plotting and reliable characterization are fully present in this top-notch thriller. 50,000 first printing; author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing (April 12, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517199467
• ISBN-13: 978-0517199466
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,426,808 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An effective mystery, June 25, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Dark Specter: A novel (Hardcover)

Michael Dibdin's Dark Spectre is a compelling read that
effectively combines multiple perspective to create a
cohesive tale. The reader is able to follow the plot from
three perspectives, that of the criminal, the investigating
officer and Phil, the "innocent bystander." Dibdin's prose
style is complex, more engaging and literary than is often
found in fictional thrillers.

The plot centers around a religous group founded on the
misconstrued principles of William Blake's poetical writings.
To become a full-fledged member of this following, a murder
is necessitated of a purely random nature. The connection
of these random crimes, which take place throughout the
United States, is one of the ways in which Dibdin holds
attention and creates interest in characters and action
outside of the crimes themselves. As the plot unfolds, we
meander with Phil throughout the suspense, always coming
back to his character for the center of the story, while
Kate provides us with the factual, logical center and Sam
the emotional, criminal aspect.

All in all, a satisfying read. Not as quite quick as some
more garden variety thrillers but well worth the time.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not the Author's best., October 19, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Dark Specter: A novel (Hardcover)

As a fan I was a little disappointed. I felt the Manson theme and American setting was too open to allow the author to fully exercise his talents.
For me Dibdin excels at intricate plot lines in enclosed universes and delicious ironic twists of fate.
Still a more accomplished novel than most in the field though not as viscerally gripping as some of the American writers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Chapter Grabber, July 4, 2001

By 

Bridget Hockney (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dark Specter (Paperback)

Dibdin knows how to capture your attention. He definitely knows how to draw you in. Each chapter leaves you wanting to read "just one more" as when you guiltily reach for "just one more" of your favorite sins. Felt the book sagged near the end-- too much quick tidying- but even the ending was unique. It ends with a bang.